In case you missed it, Rod Blagojevich, the man charged with finding a suitable replacement for Barack Obama’s vacant Illinois senate seat, was ousted last week from the Illinois Governor’s mansion by a vote of 114 to one. Now serious questions are being raised regarding the legitimacy of his political appointments and the general health of democracy in America. But the real threat to democracy is the plague of unbridled personal avarice, not a broken electoral system.
As Blagojevich prepared to perform his constitutional duty by finding a proper candidate, the public assumed that as the democratically elected head of state, he would exercise the same fairness, transparency and democratic integrity that prevailed in his own ascension to power.
Not so of course. Instead, Blagojevich plotted to sell off the seat which, as a potential stepping stone to the oval office, was a “fucking golden” opportunity for the ambitious, deep-pocketed, courtiers of the Illinois aristocracy. However, unbeknownst to the governor, his entire scheme was recorded via wiretap by joint FBI, IRS and Postal Inspection Service investigation.
We are now faced with an awful revelation. It seems that many of the milestones along the path to the presidency can be, and often are, bought and sold to the highest bidder. Our sense of justice demands the corruption be expunged. Do we blame the electoral processes itself? The greed of individual officials? Or the people for not seeing through the flashy smile and “testicular virility” of their nominees?
Surely we can’t blame the people, as the public perception of Blagojevich was that of a moral crusader; a man who even got in the way of family businesses in order to serve the state of Illinois. Furthermore, we can’t blame the system itself, as Blagojevich was elected fairly by the people, on the basis of his qualifications and stellar reputation.
Punishment for this unforgivable act of corruption can only fall into the greasy hands of governor Blagojevich himself. He chose to sell the seat and he is the one who will suffer for his actions.
Putting blame on the system is futile, as the only potential fix would require direct elections for all appointed officials. Needless to say, electing every last bureaucrat would overwhelm voters with a deluge of insignificant political minutiae.
It doesn’t matter how much you tweak your government – unless we institute a draconian committee for the propagation of virtue and prevention of vice, scoundrels and scallawags will still manage to get elected to higher office. One can only hope they’ll be thrown to the wolves just like “back room” Blago, caught as he was in a web of constitutional checks and balances.
The power of memory
The architect of our past.
